BRUNSWICK - The judge in the Guy Heinze Jr. death penalty murder case said Tuesday he wants to begin jury selection for trial in August and begin the trial itself by September.

But lawyer Newell Hamilton Jr., who is defending the 25-year-old Heinze on charges he beat his father and seven others to death in a mobile home in August 2009, told Superior Court Judge Stephen Scarlett he could not be ready for trial by then. Hamilton claims he has a lot of preparation left because prosecutors have purposely delayed providing his team with DNA test results and other information the law says he should have.

“We want to put the trial off until January 2014,’’ Hamilton said.

That brought a gasp from a member of the victims’ family.

“That’s not going to happen,’’ Scarlett said.

Scarlett also sounded some notes of impatience on the opening day of a two-day hearing on defense motions saying, “We’re going to find out who’s been dragging their feet in regards to these discovery issues.”

Scarlett repeatedly pressed Hamilton to decide whether he wanted to move the trial out of Glynn County because of pretrial publicity.

The slayings have already been widely aired “in the blogosphere, Googled and discussed,” Scarlett said.

“Between now and four months from now, nothing is going to change outside the courtroom,” he said.

He is giving Hamilton until Monday to decide.

The date and location of the trial notwithstanding, Hamilton and prosecutor John B. Johnson found plenty to haggle over beside timing.

Johnson expressed frustration over the defense continually asking for a tape of a recorded interview that investigators from the Glynn County Police Department says they don’t have.

The taped interview sought is one with Joseph Bryant “Big Joe” Anderson, who told Glynn County police Lt. Keith Stalvey and Sgt. Ricky Evans that a relative knew of a person that Hamilton characterized as “an alternative defendant.”

Both Stalvey and Evans testified that they couldn’t find the tape. Evans testified that he had written a report on the interview — which the defense has — but had not found the tape despite an exhaustive search.

That was not enough for Hamilton who called Glynn County Police Chief Matt Doering as a witness. Doering testified he didn’t know where the tape was.

There is also the issue of the timing of the release of DNA test results to the defense. Hamilton argued over the results of tests done on the pants of victims.

Hamilton said the test results the defense asked for in October 2012 had just been handed over in the past three weeks, not enough time for his team to examine and analyze them.

Johnson disputed that assertion saying the defense has had the DNA test results it asked for since Nov. 27, 2012, in the form of raw data.

Rusty Toler’s son, Michael Toler, 19, was still alive when police arrived after Heinze said in a frantic 911 call that his entire family had been beaten to death. Michael Toler died a day later at a Savannah hospital. Chrissy Toler’s son, Byron Jimerson, now 7, recovered from a severe head injury and lives with his paternal grandmother, Gloria Jimerson.

terry.dickson@jacksonville.com, (912) 264-0405

911 calls

The initial 911 call

911 call from property manager

Excerpts from the 911 calls

First excerpt: Heinze: I just got home. My whole family’s dead. Dispatcher: OK, tell me what’s go on sir. Heinze: I just got .home (inaudible) I got home just now. My whole family’s dead. It looks like they’ve been beaten to death. I don’t know.